Political Views in Russia

Russia from 1850 to 1917 was littered
with numerous political views that ranged across the whole political spectrum.
Whereas there were many groups that supported the working class and wanted to
advance their cause, there were fewer groups that came out in support of the
tsar – though these were small in number, they wielded huge power and included
the hierarchy of the military and church. Those on the left wanted wholesale
change including an abolition of monarchy. Those in charge within Russia, viewed
any change as a potential sign of weakness.

What did the working class actually
think about those political groups fighting for their cause? When actual figures
are studied, the number of people who took part in the November Revolution of
1917 is actually small relative to the population of Russia. One of the defining
moments of the C20th, actually involved a small number of people. Does this
prove that the Bolsheviks did not have the support of the mass of the people? Or
was it more a sign of the way Lenin worked – advancing a cause with a small
number of well-trained people? If there was overwhelming support for Lenin and
the Bolsheviks, why was there a bloody civil war after November 1917?

Was Russia pre-1917 split between the
right and left? In fact, a solid political centre existed in Russia that
represented a middle way in politics. They believed that fundamental reforms
were needed to secure the most basic of freedoms but they did not want a
parliamentary monarchy. The whole group was represented by politicians such as
Peter Stolypin and by parties such as the Duma Conservatives and Cadets. The
rich peasants – the Kulaks – would also come within this centrist group.

Those on the right of politics wanted
reform – but reform that strengthened the monarchy. They believed that any
reforms that aided the lives of the poor could be interpreted as a sign of
weakness.

On the far left were the Social
Revolutionaries and the Social Democrats. They wanted the wholesale shake-up of
Russia’s society to advance the cause of the poor at the expense of the rich
and those in government.

One could not sit comfortably with the other. The
right had the aristocrats, the military and church hierarchy and the nation’s
senior civil servants on its side. Any one of these groups was small in number.
Combined, they remained small in number, but with vast power at their disposal.
The left had none of these advantages – ironically, it was these people it
wished to overthrow – but it had the potential support of the vast majority of
Russia’s population, as long as their power could be harnessed. In a country
the size of Russia, this was a very difficult problem.